I am sure this rings a bell in many people's minds. It is,
after all, one of the more popular songs these days, as long
as you are familiar with alternative rock. The song is simple,
nothing too complex in the musical department, and even less
in the philosophical. So why have The Flys gained popularity
through it? The answer lies in the simplicity of their music
itself. Theirs is the laid-back alternarock sound we have
not heard in a while - the sound of a teenager / twenty-something
who frankly just doesn't give a damn. I am sure we can all
relate.

This
relation is what makes "Got You (Where I Want You)"
such a popular hit. What else screams "big hit"
better than a song about picking up women, coupled with one
of those ever-popular "aah-oooh" singalongs? However,
no matter how much this song may be a hit with the kids, the
rest of the album fails to follow suit.

The
Flys hail from Orange County, California. They are a bunch
of surf boys who live the life we all wish we could. Vocalist
Adam Paskowitz states "We take a bite out of life."
A fitting quote coming from a band who's album cover features
a photo of drummer Nick Lucero skydiving. This lifestyle is
what their songs are about. Their lifestyle is the Cali
lifestyle.

So
what kind of music does stem from this lifestyle? Well
nothing too deeply intelligent, you can rest assured of that.
Throughout the album you will find songs about the complexities
of the minds of women to the magical wonders of basketball
(yes, basketball). Hey, at least they are covering familiar
territory. Only a rock star can try to get women with lines
like "I will loan you my credit cards / I will give you
my car / I will roll out the red carpet for you / I'm gonna
make you a star." But hey, they're big rock stars, what
else can you expect? If perchance you would just like to hear
a nice little love song, you could skip to the final track
for a "Sexual Sandwich."

Well,
seeing as their vocals are just not tempting me as the Sirens
do, I will move on to other aesthetic qualities. Sadly, I
still fail to find much value in this category as well. The
guitar does have a harder crunch than most of the more popular
alternarock lately, but it is nothing we haven't heard before.
Can you say "Nirvana" ? I can. Now don't get me
wrong, there is more talent than simple power chords here,
(a la Kurt Cobain) but not much. The addition of a three-to-four
note riff, or the glorious use of a whammy bar does not qualify
as any kind of grand talent. The band only strays from this
all-too-often heard musical style on two tracks - "The
Family" - a funky little track that sounds like something
from Fly and the Family Stone, and "Sexual Sandwich"
- which sounds like a classic "feel like making love"
track. Now these two tracks - those are quality.

By
far the most annoying aspect of this album is the blatant
overuse of their vocal decoder, the "Paskowitz Nebulizer."
While it is interesting to know that the decoder was created
by Adam, this hardly allows for the misuse it receives on
this album. I for one would like to hear a normal voice somewhere.
The vocals on every rock tune on this album gets a beating
from this damned machine. It would have been much more effective
had it been used much more sparingly. The only track which
does not receive the treatment of the "decoder of death"
is "Sexual Sandwhich" - by far the most original
work on the album.

Holiday
Man
is nothing to squawk about. In fact, it is hardly worth the
occasional peep. With the exception "Got You (Where I
Want You)" and possibly future alternapop hits "Holiday
Man," and "She's So Huge"
I have no idea what the buzz is about. The music and instrumentation
is well-worked, but the lyrics just leave much to be desired.
The biggest problem is in the overuse of the vocoder. Their
music is feel-good, nothing more. If that is what you are
hip to, dig right in. If you are looking for more, I suggest
you look elsewhere.